Vatic Note: Let me begin by saying that in Pagosa we have one newspaper and its no different than the MSM everywhere. However, we got lucky and had someone who got tired of recycled and controlled news, that he started his own on line newspaper called the "Pagosa Daily Post". Because of him, we now get the real news, not only nationally, but more important, locally which is very much beginning to reflect national issues. One example are "The Smart Meters" now being promoted by our local utility and forced on residents of our county. We don't get anything about what is happening from our local newspaper, but we do from the Daily post. I even signed up for a daily feed service and get these reports daily. Now onto this article. The subject man listed as the owner of this resort (his daughter bought the Springs, in her name, but he owns it) has a history with the Drug Running and money laundering cabal of this country. He spent 6 years in jail for drugs. That is the local rumor here, but no one knows exactly what he spent time for with respect to such drugs. We don't know if it was distributing those drugs or money laundering. He owns a ranch here at the east end of town and every wednesday night a plane came in from Florida and would drop off drugs that are to be forwarded to the west coast for distribution. Oh, and we found out that he bought the Springs hotel to use as money laundering vehicle. So the IRS showed up as well. Now, we don't know that for a fact, we were just told that and we used to hear the planes every wednesday night, so we believed what we were told. I have not heard the planes since Marijuana was legalized in this state. I suppose legalizing those drugs put a big hole in the cabal's income scheme for their black ops projects. .... To me when the IRS accompanies the DEA on a raid, that means income with no taxation was involved and drugs fit that perfectly. Anyway, you read this below and you decide. I just thought it was interesting to include a report on local happenings related to national and international power grab. This happening took the issue out of the national level of detached involvement, to the local level where we see and feel what is happening directly. It does make a difference. A Friendly Investigation at the Pagosa Springs Resort | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.pagosadailypost.com/news/26874/A_Friendly_Investigation_at_the_Springs_Resort/ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bill Hudson, Pagosa Daily Post, | 9/26/14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The agents in their black DEA t-shirts and polo shirts were quite friendly today — Thursday, September 25 — when I stopped by the Springs Resort at 11am to see what the commotion was all about. Unmarked vehicles had been parked blocking the vehicle entrances to the resort, the upscale repository of most of Pagosa's geothermal water resources (thanks to a sweet-heart 'geothermal water lease' negotiated by former Town Manager David Mitchem.) The agents were allowing resort guests to come and go, but members of the public wishing to enjoy the various "therapeutic mineral baths" were being turned away. Politely. You would almost think these guys were from Pagosa, they were so friendly. Assuredly, they must have been from Colorado, at minimum. Members of the press (such as myself) were directed (politely) to address any questions to the Public Information Officer, Special Agent Bryan Thiel, who works out of a Denver office for the US Department of the Treasury (IRS, Criminal Investigation). Mr. Thiel was as amiable as the rest of the team, and gave me a brief rundown of the ongoing events. "We're here with DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) doing a warrant. I can't really get into the details of that right now, but I can tell you that we've secured the location — more for an officer safety standpoint. "We are letting guests who are staying here [at the Springs Resort] come and go; we're just asking people who want to come use the pool for the day, not to come. For officer safety. And we're hoping to be out of here by the end of the day." |
So then, would people be able to use the mineral baths later this evening? I asked.
"That is correct. We're hoping — I mean, I really can't say what time we'll be out of here; it just depends... but we're hoping to be out of here late this afternoon... and the business can do as they wish. If they want to open back up, they're more than welcome to.
"I wish I could share more, but..."
Of course, even though Mr. Thiel was limited in what information he could share, we can use our imaginations. As I understand it, the Treasury Department and the DEA have been investigating the Whittington family — owners of the Springs Resort — for several years now. Investigative reporter Cynda Green posted a Daily Post article last year about a (possibly related?) investigation at the Springs Resort.
You can read a bit here about Bill Whittington's drug smuggling days back in the 1980s. In 1986, Mr. Whittington pleaded guilty to income tax evasion and conspiracy to smuggle marijuana into the United State from Columbia. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison, according to Wikipedia.
As I understand it, drug smuggling and income tax evasion often go hand-in-hand, for obvious reasons. We might surmise, as well, that a successful lodging operation could be used to launder drug money — and that a warrant might help undercover evidence of such activities, if such were taking place. Which is not to suggest that I know any details, whatsoever, about the warrant being served at the Springs Resort this morning. I'm just rambling.
I asked Special Agent Bryan Thiel how many agents were participating in the activities at the Springs Resort; he estimated a dozen or so.
When we might be able to learn more about the results of this investigation?
Mr. Thiel explained that, the case of a warrant, the release of information is largely at the discretion of the District Attorney's office.
"It could be a few days. Or it could be months. That depends on what they decide; it's really out of our control."
He handed me his business card and invited me to send him an email if I wanted further information.
Like I said, friendly.
"I guess this place is secretly owned by the CIA," he informed me. "The same group owns the airport down in Florida where they trained the 9/11 pilots. The CIA is laundering drug money through the resort, and the DEA is investigating them."
He'd learned this from a fellow guest at the resort, he said. Things I didn't know, I will readily admit.
I offered the friendly gentleman an alternative theory of my own — one that did not involve the CIA or the 9/11 pilots.
But who really knows? It's a strange world we live in.
True to their word, the agents were gone by about 4pm, and the Springs Resort was back to normal. At least, it looked normal to me.
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